


Purple Hyacinths In Your Eyes

by theworldswecantsee



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Flower Shop, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Angst, Bisexual Lance (Voltron), Florist AU, Gay Keith (Voltron), Homophobia, M/M, Multi, Nonbinary Pidge | Katie Holt, Polyamory, from lance's father
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-05-26
Updated: 2017-06-21
Packaged: 2018-11-05 00:19:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 9,002
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11002005
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/theworldswecantsee/pseuds/theworldswecantsee
Summary: Lance fell in love in front of the gas station at the corner of Rosemary St. and Coriander Ave. The boy across the street from him was soaked from the rain that was still pouring around them. He had shaggy dark hair and piercing eyes that reminded Lance of a purple hyacinth he saw in his grandmother’s garden when he was eight. He figured it was the glow of the dull streetlamp that made them that color. No one deserved to have eyes that sad.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This was originally gonna be a giant one shot but like five minutes ago I was just like "nah, lets start another chapter fic" and this happened.  
> Some things to know:  
> 1\. They're all out of highschool. I've only decided that Lance and Hunk are sophomores in college but the rest of them are a mystery  
> 2\. If the flower is specified it has important symbolism because I'm obsessed with flower symbolism

Lance fell in love in front of the gas station at the corner of Rosemary St. and Coriander Ave. The boy across the street from him was soaked from the rain that was still pouring around them. He had shaggy dark hair and piercing eyes that reminded Lance of a purple hyacinth he saw in his grandmother’s garden when he was eight. He figured it was the glow of the dull streetlamp that made them that color. No one deserved to have eyes that sad.

Not that Lance’s eyes were any better. He himself was shuttering in the cold rain, tears and raindrops blending together to make a salty mess on his face. His father’s furious voice was the only sound pounding through his head, overcoming the patter of the storm.

The boy with the purple hyacinth eyes stared back at him. Lance caught the hint of a smile and the boy turned and left.

The streetlamp fluttered and the only light left was the flickering Bud Light sign on the window of the gas station.

 

~~

 

“Lance, you don’t even know the boy’s name!” Hunk shouted from behind a stand of geraniums. “And what about your soulmate?”

“My soulmate doesn’t even respond to me, Hunk,” Lance said. “Why should I wait around for someone who doesn’t want anything to do with me when I can be with someone who might actually – you know- _talk_?”

Lance walked around to Hunk and retied his apron as he went. Hunk was giving him a look that Lance knew meant his bullshit had been seen through but chose to ignore it. So what if he really did want a connection with his soulmate? It was not Hunk’s place to call him out on his blatant lies. As his best friend, Hunk was supposed to support Lance through all his coping mechanisms.

And that meant going along with his lies… and supporting his hopeless romantic tendencies.

Lance huffed and pouted before taking the watering can from Hunk to water the lady’s-mantle. Lance knew he wasn’t _really_ in love with Purple Hyacinth Eyes, PHE for short, he was just lonely. His father wasn’t speaking to him, his mother and siblings were trying to stay on his father’s good side, and his only friend was Hunk. He didn’t even care if PHE was interested in him; Lance just wanted someone else to talk to.

Don’t get him wrong, he loved Hunk, but Hunk has been all he’s had besides his family. Who wanted to be friends with the queer Latino kid who only talked about space, flowers, and books? Hunk. Hunk is the only one.

Not even his _soulmate_ wanted to be with him.

“Have you tried talking to your soulmate recently?” Hunk asked. He sounded cautious, like he was afraid Lance would go off on him.

“This morning,” Lance sighed. He put down the watering can and rolled up his sleeve to show his right arm. “ _Did you know lavender symbolizes devotion?”_ was written in neat cursive. “I’ve started sending them flower symbolisms that are the opposite of the way they’re treating me so they understand how bitter I am underneath my sweet façade.”

Hunk started cracking up laughing and so did the person behind them. They jumped, startled by the new voice, and turned to see a girl with short messy hair and too large glasses.

“That’s great!” the girl tried to cover her mouth to muffle the laughter but it didn’t work.

“Ummm, can we help you?” Hunk asked. He was staring at her with amusement and slight confusion. Lance pulled his sleeve back down and the girl wiped invisible tears from her eyes.

“I’m sorry,” she took a deep breath. “I saw the ‘Now Hiring’ sign outside and was wondering if I could get and application.”

“Yeah, no problem,” Hunk stood from where was crouched down and wiped his hands on his apron. “I’ll go get you one real quick.” Lance watched him shuffle to the back room and turned back to the girl.

“I’m Lance,” he stuck out his hand and the girl shook it.

“Pidge,” she smirked and let go of his hand. “Trouble in paradise?”

“There can’t be any trouble if they’ve never even talked to me before.” Lance shrugged it off but Pidge had a brief look of guilt.

“Yikes.”

“Nah, man, it’s whatever.”

“Okay! I got it!” Hunk came bounding back to them with a paper in his hand. “Here you go! My name’s Hunk, by the way.”

“Pidge,” she nodded and looked over the paper and stopped to grin at something on it. “You guys have an ‘other’ option?”

“Oh, for gender?” Lance said. “Yeah, Allura was very adamant about Coran adding that.”

Pidge’s face lit up. “I’m gonna have to thank her when I see her next.”

“You know Allura?” Hunk asked. Pidge folded up the paper and stuffed it in the back pocket of her shorts.

“Yeah, she’s dating my brother Matt.” Pidge ran a hand through her hair and Lance wanted to slap himself. Pidge was practically identical to Matt.

Oh, wait, that meant –

“Oh! You use they/them pronouns, right?” Hunk asked looking a bit sheepish. Pidge laughed.

“Yep!”

“Oh jeez, I’m so sorry!” Lance ran his dirt covered hands nervously through his hair. “I’ve been misgendering you in my mind for the past five minutes. I’m so sorry.”

“Don’t worry about it, man.” Pidge lightly punched his shoulder. “I didn’t tell you any differently so you’re good.”

Lance was about to respond when his phone started vibrating in his pocket. He pulled it out and Hunk and Pidge continued to talk but the blood pounding in his ears as he read the text from his sister kept him from understanding what they were saying.

**From Soph:**

_dont come home tonight… dad might be kicking you out_

Lance took a deep breath. He was not going to have a meltdown in front of someone he just met and could be a potential friend.

“Lance, buddy, you okay?” Hunk asked. Lance looked up to see Hunk and Pidge staring at him with concern.

“Yeah, yeah man. I, uh,” Lance swallowed. “I need a place to crash tonight.”

“Oh,” Hunk had guilt written across his face. “Shay’s coming over tonight. I’m so-“

“You can stay at my place.” Pidge interrupted. “Matt, Shiro, and Allura are gonna be there if that makes you more comfortable.”

Lance frowned. “Are you sure?”

“Yeah, dude. I do not want to be alone with the three of them. They’re always so mushy.” Pidge grimaced.

“Yeah, we know.” Hunk twisted his face at the many, many, _many_ unfortunate encounters with the three of them together.

“So, yeah, it’s not a problem. We can play video games or marathon Star Wars.” Pidge shoved their hands in their back pockets and looked up at Lance expectantly.

“I guess. But you literally just met me…”

“Trust me, I’ve heard enough about you two that it _does not_ feel like we’ve just met.” Pidge gave them an innocent looking smile that Lance did not trust in the slightest.

“Okay, if you’re sure,” Lance bit his lip.

“I wouldn’t offer if I wasn’t,” Pidge’s smile morphed into a softer one. “When do you get off work?”

 

~~

 

Pidge stayed true to their word and was waiting for Lance when he got off at six. He locked the front door and stored the keys in his front pocket.

Pidge was sitting on the sidewalk by the door with their back against the wall and was tapping away on their phone. The case was covered in little alien heads and it reminded Lance of something Matt had said about them once. _“Pidge believes in aliens because they want to believe there’s a world out there she can physically escape to. Any world is better than this one.”_ Lance couldn’t agree more.

“Okay. Pidge Pie, show the way!” Pidge jumped at the sound of Lance’s voice and scowled.

“Don’t call me that.” They stood up and dusted of their shorts. “My place is a few blocks away from here but it’s still a bit of a walk.”

“That’s fine.”

“Oh, and Keith might be over as well, but you never know with him.” Pidge scratched the back of their head and started their way down the sidewalk.

“That’s Shiro’s brother, right?” Lance positioned himself so he was closer to the street and Pidge was kept between him and the buildings they passed.

“Yeah, you’ve met him?”

“No, but Shiro’s mentioned him a few times. He always complains about Keith’s motorcycle.”

Pidge laughed and stopped to press the button on the crosswalk signal. “Shiro hates that thing! Between you and me, though, I think it’s cool as shit.”

“I’m not surprised.” The little green man lit up on the signal across the street. Lance made himself walk forward and kept his eyes focused on the sign. He knew further down was the corner of Rosemary and Coriander. Lance had been avoiding it since two nights ago.

He was thankful when Pidge turned after crossing. Lance distracted himself by taking in the different stores they passed. Most of them were old and run down but were still being used even after years since their last shape lift. If Lance had to guess, he’d say that most of them had been homes before they were turned into stores and restaurants.

Even the flower shop he worked at, Alluring Floral, used to be a home.

“You like to think, don’t you?” Pidge asked as the crossed another street.

“I guess?” Lance looked down at them with a bit of confusion.

“At first I thought you were someone who could never keep their mouth shut, just from what I’ve heard about you,” Lance suddenly wanted to know what Pidge heard about. “But we’re almost to my place and you haven’t said a word since we turned off of Rosemary.”

“I guess there’s just a lot on my mind,” Lance shrugged.

“That’s fair.” Pidge thankfully didn’t ask for more details. “Just to warn you though, our honorary parents are worried about you and will probably ask a shit load of questions the moment you walk through the doors.”

“Shit. Do you think Keith would let me run away on his motorcycle?” Lance asked as he and Pidge walked into an apartment complex.

“Dude, would you rather concerned questioning or the disappointed scolding?” Pidge raised eyebrow pushed the button for the elevator.

“No.”Pidge laughed as the elevator doors pinged open and they stepped in.

The ride was quick since Pidge and Matt only lived on the third floor. Lance’s stomach twisted anxiously as Pidge dug through their pockets looking for their keys, and not just because his boss and her boyfriends were on the other side of the door.

“Lance!” was the first thing said as they entered the apartment. Lance was immediately pulled into a giant hug by Allura. “Are you okay? What happened? Do I need to fight someone?”

“Allura let him breath,” Lance heard Matt chuckle. Allura pulled away but not without kissing his forehead first.

“I’m pretty sure you’re not supposed to do that as my boss.” Lance blushed at the affection and rubbed his forehead.

Allura gave him a smile. “I’m not your boss when we’re not at work. Right now I’m your friend and _very_ concerned.”

“I’m fine. I just-“ Lance really wanted to convince her he was fine. He didn’t want her or anyone else worrying over him but looking at Allura, and finding comfort in her arms he couldn’t stop the tears that had been threatening to spill over all day. He pulled Allura back to him and hid his face in her hair.

“Sshh, dear, I’m here,” Allura whispered and rubbed circles on his back.

“I don’t have home anymore,” Lance whimpered and Allura’s grip tightened. Lance ignored the patter of footsteps that ran out of the hallway and the ones that were just entering. He pretended he wasn’t crying in front of the people he looked up to.

He pretended he wasn’t crying in front of people who apparently considered him a friend.

“Lance?” the voice was weak and cracked. Lance looked up and saw Shiro standing behind Allura even though is sight was blurry from the tears. Shiro looked broken as he watched Lance and it just occurred to him that Shiro had never seen him cry. To Shiro, Lance was a happy-go-lucky ball of never ending sunshine.

Lance let out a sob and pulled away from Allura to rush to Shiro. Shiro was safe. Shiro wouldn’t push him away.

“Lance what happened?” Shiro sounded shocked.

“He’s gonna kick me out. I don’t have a home. Shiro, I don’t have home.” Lance kept repeating himself. All he knew in that moment was that Shiro was warm, his father didn’t love him, and he didn’t have a home.

“Um?”

Lance sniffed and pried his face out of Shiro’s chest. Pidge stood in the middle of the hall with both arms wrapped around a large bowl of popcorn, a mug of what smelled like hot chocolate in each hand, and bags of candy balanced on their head.

“I’m not really sure what happened, but I have comfort snacks and all of the Star Wars movies. I just kinda grabbed what we had at hand so I’m sorry if you don’t like any of this… Why is everybody looking at me?” Pidge blinked curiously at them and then turned to their brother for an answer.

“You really do have feelings, Pidgey!” Matt giggled and was soon followed by Shiro and Allura. Lance sniffed and rubbed the tears out of his eyes before walking up to Pidge and taking the candy bags off of their head.

“Thanks, Pidge Pie.” Lance ruffled their head. “Let’s get to those movies and give the lovebirds their peace.”

“Wait, Lance!” Shiro called after him but he and Pidge were already making a mad dash to the room in the back of the apartment. Lance pulled the door shut tight behind him when he and Pidge were both safely in.

Pidge slid down the door in a fit of giggles while Lance took in their small room. The first thing he noticed was the green. It wasn’t bright but it was there. The bed had a green comforter and pillows, the lamp and notebooks on the desk in the corner, even the little glass birds on the window sill were green. The room was also covered in plants giving the room an earthy smell. Not bright flowers like Lance had in his room, but Pidge had a multitude of herbs, succulents, and cacti.

“Not what you expected?” Pidge asked taking Lance out of his daze and giving him a smirk.

“I guess I just figured there’d be more alien and SiFi stuff,” Lance followed Pidge to their bed still taking the time to observe everything. “Maybe even a cork board.”

“I get that,” Pidge set the mugs and popcorn on the nightstand. “I guess since we already have enough of that around the place I didn’t think I’d need any in here. I never actually thought about it before.”

“Makes sense, but why all the plants?” Lance kicked of his shoes before crawling into the bed with the candy. He curled himself up against the pillows and Pidge did the same. “Why don’t you put some of them in the living room or something?”

Pidge looked him dead in the eye. “I would never, in a thousand years, let Matt’s clumsy body anywhere near my babies.”

Lance laughed, “I believe it!”

Pidge dragged their laptop from the other side of the bed, turned it on and then reached down to rummage under their bed for the movies. Lance opened the bag of bite sized chocolate bars and relaxed against the pillows as Pidge put in _A New Hope_.

They were halfway through _The Empire Strikes Back_ when Lance felt his phone vibrate with a text.

**Soph:**

_Ben and I are gonna bring some of your stuff to your work tomorrow_

 

_I would suggest staying away for a while_

 

Lance read and reread the text about twenty times before he chucked his phone across Pidge’s room, careful not to aim close to any of their plants. He couldn't breathe and his eyes couldn't focus. He heard Pidge yelling but couldn't understand _what_ they were yelling.

Pidge's bedroom door slammed open and Matt, Shiro, and Allura all rushed in practically tripping over each other. Shiro had Lance in his arms in an instant and was rocking him like a child. Lance knew Shiro was trying to comfort him but all Lance could feel was dread settled deep into his stomach. The sense of doom washed over him in waves. Lance would say he's a pretty decent swimmer but this was an ocean he was never going to swim out of.

Lance squeezed his eyes shut and covered his ears when he suddenly felt overwhelmed with the chaos around him. The color of his grandmother’s purple hyacinths suddenly splashed across his eyelids and he took a shaky breath. He pictured the glow of the streetlight on the corner of Rosemary St. and Coriander Ave. across from the gas station with the flickering Bud Light sign.

He remembered the smile he was given despite his state of panic that night.

“-okay?”

“What?” Lance flinched at his croaky voice.

“Are you hurt?” Shiro asked quietly.

Lance took a moment to focus on each area of his body. He felt tense and cramped but he knew that was because of the tight ball he forced his body to become. “No.”

He felt Shiro’s chest rise and fall and tried to match his still heavy breathing with it. Lance didn't dare open his eyes.

“You know, Keith has been looking for a roommate.” Shiro whispered it but Lance still heard.

“How soon do you think he be okay with them moving in?” Lance wiped his face in an attempt to clear it of tears.

“I'd say as soon as tomorrow evening.”

Lance finally forced his eyes open and turned his head so he could see Allura, Matt, and Pidge all staring at him with worried expressions. Allura and Pidge both had tears in their eyes and Lance felt his stomach fill with guilt. He didn’t want them to be sad just because he couldn’t handle his emotions.

He was a sophomore in college. It was time for him to move out anyway…

Lance felt a sob building up in his throat.

“You can stay here tonight,” Matt put a hand on Lance’s shoulder.

Allura nodded. “We can go to work together tomorrow if you’d like.”

Lance gave a hum of agreement and felt his eyes become heavy. Shiro helped him stand up and a few seconds later a large pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt was shoved into his hands. He changed quickly in the restroom with his back towards the mirror. For once he didn’t want to look at himself.

When he walked back into Pidge’s room they were back against the pillows and opened their arms for Lance. He let them attempt to wrap their entire body around his and he let out a giggle. Pidge used their big toe to play the movie again but Lance was already starting to drift off.

“Hunk called,” Pidge whispered. “He’s really worried.”

“He always is,” Lance mumbled back but he wasn’t sure if Pidge heard. He felt his chest feel lighter at the thought of his best friend and fell asleep.

 

~~

 

Lance yawned for the fourth time as he an Allura walked to work. He had a half empty to-go cup of coffee in his hand and was motivated with the thought of the coffee maker in the back room of Alluring Floral. Yep, this is where he was in life, only motivated to live so he could have just one more mug of coffee.

He glanced at a small café and would have been comforted by the smell if he hadn’t seen the small groups of students studying.

Crap.

Lance didn’t have any of his school books and he wasn’t sure if his siblings would know to bring them. He pulled out his phone just as it vibrated with a text.

**Ben:**

_We’re grabbing your school bag and anything around your desk that looks like school work… sorry if we forget anything._

Lance loved Ben and Sophie. The three of them were triplets but you wouldn’t even be able to tell unless you met them all at the same time. They looked alike but their personalities were very different. Sophie wasn’t as sociable as Lance and Ben. She preferred being alone than in a large crowd but she was extremely witty and wasn’t afraid to put people in their place.

Ben knew _everyone_. He was kind and always helped people out and Lance was constantly afraid someone was going to take him for granted. He was also a gym addict. Lance swears, if Ben wasn’t out with friends he was at the gym working out. It was kind of ridiculous actually.

And then there was Lance. Lance liked being around people but only people he knew well. He wasn’t interested in parties but would rather just hang out with Hunk. He liked being outside and reading and _space_. Lance loved outer space. And he wouldn’t let anyone know but he was constantly ripping himself apart for not having what it took to major in astrophysics. So he settled for botany, his second love, and gave fleeting glances to the stars.

“I never knew you could be so quiet,” Allura said.

“Huh?” Lance shoved his phone back in his pocket and jerked his head to her. “What do you mean?”

“It just feels like you usually have something to say,” Allura had a look of guilt wash over her face. “That’s not a bad thing! I’m just not used to this part of you I guess.”

Lance hummed in contemplation. He never realized but he did tend to constantly carry a conversation when he was around others. Except for this morning… and yesterday.

“Shiro said Keith would come meet you sometime this morning.”

Lance felt his stomach twist in nerves. He had almost forgotten that he was going to be moving in with Shiro’s little brother, who he hadn’t even met yet, and was going to have to make a good impression. He looked down at the clothes he was wearing – yeah, the ones he wore yesterday – and groaned into his hand. His face felt oily, too. Just great.

“Keith’s really not going to care about how you look, you know. He doesn’t judge anyone until has a feel of what they’re like.” Allura placed a hand on Lance’s shoulder. “Now come on, we’ve got some plats to water.”

Lance looked up to realize they had made it to the shop and groaned again. He was so out of it.

 

Lance was an hour into his shift when he heard someone enter the shop. He made his way to the front counter and was about to welcome the costumer until he saw _who_ it was. PHE was standing there with his arms across his chest but Lance could tell he was nervous from his look as his eyes flitted across the store. When his gaze landed on Lance, his eyes lit up with what could have been recognition but Lance wasn’t going to take his chances.

“Can I help you?” Lance gave himself a mental high five for keeping his voice steady.

PHE cleared his throat. “I, uh, I’m looking for, um, Lance?” He shifted his weight from one foot to the other and his arms tightened. He was definitely not high fiving himself.

“That’s me,” Lance had to keep from gripping the counter in nerves. How did the man he’s been pining over for days know his name?

“Oh great!” The boy dropped his arms and stepped closer to Lance and stuck his hand out. “I’m Keith. Shiro said you needed a place to stay.”

Lance shook Keith’s hand and nodded. “Yeah, sorry it’s kind of sudden.”

Keith shrugged and pulled his hand away. “It’s not a problem. Do you want –“

“Lance!” Ben and Sophie barged through the doorway and straight to the counter. Sophie stopped herself before running into it but Ben simply used his momentum to jump over the counter – bags and all – to give Lance a bone crushing hug.

“Ben, I love you, but I can’t breathe.” Lance slapped at his brother’s arms. Ben didn’t let go but only loosened his grip and buried his face into Lance’s neck. He could hear his brother muttering something but couldn’t make out what and let his forehead rest on Ben’s shoulder. He wasn’t sure how he was going to live without his siblings.

“You know, people who aren’t employees can’t be behind the counter,” Lance said and patted Ben’s back.

“I will fight your boss.” Ben tightened his grip again.

Lance heard Keith scoff, “Dude, his boss his Allura.”

“Shit,” Ben was off of Lance in a flash and back over the counter. Ben landed next to Keith and rested his elbow on Keith’s shoulder. “What’s up, Keith?”

“Oh, uh –“

“Hold up!” Lance interrupted and walked around the counter. “How do you two know each other?”

“We’re gym buddies!” Ben cheered and Keith rolled his eyes. Lance sent a look to Ben that he hope said _And you never said anything why?_ He must have understood because Ben smirked and wrapped his arm around Keith’s shoulders. “I’ve been trying to tell you to join me, bro.”

Sophie cleared her throat and the three boys turned to her. “We’re here to bring Lance his things not talk gym, Benny.”

“Oh, right,” Ben and Lance said. Lance felt his chest suddenly feel like it was freezing over. This was it – this made it all real.

“Um, I brought my car so y’all can just put everything in there. I don’t mind bringing it back to the apartment.” Keith pulled his keys out of his pockets.

“Wait, what?” Sophie frowned.

“Oh yeah, I’m moving in with Keith!” Lance tried to sound excited but he’s pretty sure his siblings both saw through him.

“You two know each other?” Ben asked.

“Not really,” Keith answered.

Lance scratched the back of his head. “I know Shiro, Keith’s brother, and Shiro knew I needed a place to live and Keith needed a roommate so yeah.”

Ben chuckled and ruffled Keith’s hair. “Thanks, man.”

“It’s no problem,” Keith mumbled and blushed. He turned back to Lance. “I’ll go bring your stuff to the apartment. What time to you get off work? I can pick you up.”

“Oh, um, ten.”

Keith nodded and turned to walk out. His siblings followed but not before both giving Lance a reassuring smile. Lance watched them all walk out in a daze and was absolutely positive he had a blush covering his cheeks.

He was shaken out of his trance when he felt his left hand tingle and stared at it with wide eyes.

_10_


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I told myself I'd get better about updating my fics but well... some things never change I guess.

_Anemone symbolizes anticipation._

Lance didn’t include that they could also be used to indicate fading hope and a feeling of having been forsaken. He had written it at soon as the number ten appeared on his hand in hope that his soulmate would actually respond. It was useless, though. His soulmate never responded and the ten faded within the hour.

Lance sighed and checked the time on his phone. He still had two more hours to go and nothing to do. He had watered all the plants that needed it, restocked the packets of seeds, arranged the bouquets that Allura was delivering at the moment, and there were absolutely no customers. Maybe he could text Soph and Ben to bring him a book.

He looked around the shop trying to think of something to do when his eyes landed on the carnations – the _yellow carnations_. He jumped up as an idea struck him.

_I’m gonna make dad a Fuck You bouquet._

It was petty and overdone but Lance _was_ petty and very, very, bitter. And besides, it’s not like his dad would actually know what the flowers meant. He texted Sophie and Ben to ask them to come back to the shop to pick it up and got to work.

He grabbed the yellow carnations first because they are essential for all Fuck You bouquets. He placed them on the counter and made his way to the herbs. On his way he grabbed some peonies to symbolize his anger. When he reached the herbs it didn’t take him long to find the basil. Basil isn’t usually used for bouquets but they represent hate so Lance felt inclined to use it. He went back to the counter and looked around. Most flowers had positive meanings and he had to rack his brain to think of ones to use for hatred. He smiled when he noticed the red dahlias which represented betrayal.

Something was missing, though. He had rolled up his sleeves in his process of finding flowers and his latest message to Douchebag Soulmate was out on display to the world.

_A flower with two meanings…_

Lance smiled when he noticed the hydrangeas out the corner of his eye. Hydrangeas were usually used to express gratitude but could also be used to symbolize frigidness and heartlessness. And his dad was quite frigid and heartless.

They were perfect.

He grabbed the hydrangeas and was so focused on arranging the bouquet that he didn’t notice the front door opening and the footsteps approaching him.

“Dude, what the hell?” Lance jumped at the sound of Hunk’s voice. “That is the ugliest bouquet I have ever seen.”

“It’s art, Hunk!” Lance cried and grabbed a vase from behind the counter. Hunk followed him as he walked to the back room to fill it with water.

“No, it’s a mess and I really hope you don’t plan on giving it to someone.”

“Well…” Lance gave an awkward laugh. Hunk groaned and Lance drowned it out by turning on the faucet at full force. When the vase was half full he turned off the water and shoved passed Hunk to get back to the counter.

“Why?” Hunk asked in exasperation.

“It’s a Fuck You bouquet for dad,” Lance replied with a blank face and hunk groaned again.

“He’s not even going to know that!”

“I don’t care!” Lance grabbed the flowers and crammed them into the vase. “I know what they mean and that’s enough for me.”

Hunk had grabbed an apron from the hook in the back room and was tying it as he made his way to the register. He looked tired and had dark circles under his eyes. The headband that was usually tied around his forehead was instead holding his hair in a small ponytail at the nape of his neck.

“Are you okay?” Lance asked in a quiet voice. Hunk sighed and gave him a small smile.

“I was worrying all night. I know you were at the Holt’s place and safe but I guess I’m a little scared for you.” Hunk tucked some of his bangs behind his ears and Lance felt his heart swell.

“I’m okay, Hunk. I’m moving in with Keith.” Lance nudged the vase to the edge of the counter to give him room to sit on top of it and face Hunk.

“Keith?”

“Yeah, Shiro’s little bro.” Lance felt his cheeks heat up. “And the guy I saw in the rain the other night.”

“Dude!” Hunk slapped his hands on the counter in excitement. “Does he recognize you? Is he as hot as you remember? Did you mention it all?”

“I don’t think so, hotter, and absolutely not.” Lance answered quickly and tapped the counter with his thumbs. 

“What? Why not?”

“Well, one it would have been awkward and two, Ben and Soph came in to drop off some of my things.” Hunk nodded and stared off in thought for moment. Lance took that to turn to face the shop and look for potential flowers to send his soulmate tomorrow. He needed to get his point across eventually so maybe, just _maybe_ , his soulmate would get a hint and write to him. He stared at the writing on his right arm and sighed. he had felt lonely before but now he felt incredibly hollow. Which was ridiculous considering he’s been surrounded by people who care about him. 

“We’re back!” The door was slammed opened as Ben yelled and rushed through followed by Sophie and Keith. 

“Ben, how many times have I told you not to do that here?” Lance sighed and slid off the counter. “Allura doesn’t like it and neither do the plants.”

“You’re no fun,” Ben pouted and somehow made himself seem far younger than he was despite being almost six feet tall and pure muscle.

“I’m plenty of fun!” Lance playfully punched his brother in the shoulder.

“You spend your free time reading or planting,” Sophie raised an eyebrow. “ _I_ have more fun than you.”

Lance let out a gasp of offense and turned to Hunk, pointedly ignoring Keith’s cute giggles. “I’m fun, right Hunk? Tell them I’m fun!”

Hunk held up his hands in surrender and was obviously trying to hold back laughter. “I guess you’re pretty good at Mario Cart?”

“Hunk, _no_ ,” Ben said. “He’s horrible at Mario Cart! You’re just even worse than him!”

“I will not deny that,” Hunk chuckled and gave Lance an apologetic smile.

Lance crossed his arms. “Fine, thanks for proving I’m no fun in front of my new roomie.”

“Hey dude, Keith’s no fun either!” Ben laughed and ruffled Lance’s hair.

“Hey!” Keith looked like he was _trying_ to be angry but was also still trying to hold back his laughter. It was not a good look for him.

“All you do is work out and paint,” Ben deadpanned and Sophie was attempting to suppress her giggles. Keith seemed to be looking for something to say to defend himself with but had a look of realization come over his face.

“Oh.”

That’s all it took for Lance to be doubled over in laughter. He’s not even sure what he was laughing at. Maybe it was from mental exhaustion, or he was releasing stress, or maybe even relief that he still had people who cared about him. Whatever it was, though, had him clutching his stomach and his eyes started tearing up. It didn’t take long for the laughter to become sobs and for his face to be shoved into Ben’s shoulder. 

Ben started rubbing soothing circles on Lance’s back and Sophie was hugging him from behind. Lance chose to ignore the fact that this was his second time breaking down in front of someone he had just met in the past twenty-four hours. If the world was out to humiliate him then so be it. He’d done more terrifying things in his life than crying in front of strangers. Things like coming out to his father as bi despite knowing how his father felt about those in the LGBT community. Yep, that was definitely his most terrifying experience. 

“Lance?” Keith’s quiet voice broke him out of his thoughts. 

Lance pulled his face from his brother’s neck, wiped his face, and turned to Keith. “Yeah?”

Keith rubbed at the back of his as if searching for what to say. “Would you like me to call Allura and ask if you can get off early?”

Lance took a moment to stare at him in shock. “No! Oh my gosh, no, you do _not_ have to do that!”

“Are you sure?” Keith blinked in surprise.

“Yes, dude, it’s fine. I just need to get my act toge-“

“Lance McClain, you get your ass out of my shop right now!” 

They all jumped as Allura stormed through the front door of the shop with a face set to kill someone. Lance was not about to argue when she looked like that. She stomped up to Lance and it was all he could do to not back up. She took a second to glare at him before wrapping him in a hug. 

“You get out right this instant and I better not see until your shift on Tuesday, understand?” 

“Yes - yes ma’am.” Lance loosely wrapped his arms around her shoulder.

“I knew I shouldn’t have let you worked today,” Allura muttered.

“I’m okay.” Lance knew the lie wouldn’t get passed any of them but he figured it was worth a shot.

“You are not.” Allura gave him a squeeze before backing away. “Go get yourself unpacked. Keith make sure he rests.” Allura turned to Keith with a hard glare and Keith visibly gulped.

“Yes ma’am.”

“Good!” Allura placed her hands on hips. “Pidge will be visiting your place tomorrow, by the way. They seemed to have gotten attached to Lance.”

“Ooohh, who’s Pidge?” Sophie giggled and Lance sent her a warning look. 

“Matt’s little sibling. They binged watched Star Wars with me last night.” Lance answered. Lance gave his sister a deadpan stare as she wiggled her eyebrows at him and turned to Allura. “Do you think Matt would be willing to trade siblings?”

Allura only responded by laughing and shoving towards the front of the shop. “Absolutely not!” 

“Why are you so mean to me?” Sophie called after them. 

“Where’s the flowers you want us to bring dad?” Ben asked over her.

Allura stopped pushing him and he was able to turn back to them. “Right there on the counter. Take them before Hunk hides them.”

“This is literally the ugliest bouquet I’ve ever seen!” Hunk calls from the counter and the rest of them laugh.

“It’s art, Hunk! Art!”

“Alright, Mr. Artist,” Keith chuckles and makes a shooing motion to Lance. “Let’s get you home and settled in.”

Lance tries to hide his blush and quickly turns and rushes out the door. He definitely isn’t going to hear the last of that from Hunk or his siblings.

He waits for Keith to exit the shop so he can follow him to his car. Which wasn’t a car but a small red pick-up truck that had seen far better days. Lance wasn’t one to judge, though, considering he no longer had any type of vehicle. 

They don’t talk until Keith has backed out of the tiny parking space and is halfway to the intersection of Rosemary and Coriander. Lance wonders if Keith will bring up that night in the rain or if they’ll both pretend it had never happened. He wonders if Keith had felt the same when he saw Lance or if Lance really had imagined the fraction of a smile. Maybe it was just a trick of the flickering street light.

“Shiro’s talked about you a lot,” Keith says suddenly and Lance jumps out of his thoughts.

“Should I be concerned?” Lance chuckles.

“No. He mostly just mentions how funny you are and that you always seem to know how to make his day better.” Keith glances at Lance for second. They get to the intersection and Keith turns left onto Coriander Ave. “He says you’re too nice for your own good.”

“Oh,” Lance says, not exactly sure how to react.

“What? You thought he would talk about your good looks?” Keith smirks and Lance sputters.

“I- what - _no_ \- I just didn’t,” Lance takes a deep breath. “I guess I just thought he thought I was obnoxious.”

“Nah.”

Lance let a small smile slip onto his face and let that sink in. Then he smirked, “You think I’m good looking?”

“ _That was not the point_!”

Oh this was going to be fun.

 

~~

 

Keith pulled into the driveway of a small green duplex. It looked nice enough, and so did the rest of the street. Lance could already picture how much nicer the yard will look after he made a garden. He supposed he would have to ask Keith if that would be okay first but he couldn’t imagine why it wouldn’t be. He’s already planning where each plant would be before getting to the back door. 

“Hey, would it be okay if I -“

“Planted a garden?” Keith finished and Lance nodded. “Please do. The old lady who has the front of the place will not stop bothering me about having one.”

Lance chuckles and gets a a quick look at Keith’s motorcycle parked by the back yard. Before Lance could notice anything else, Keith is ushering him in through the door. The entrance leads right into the hallway. It’s dark and cramped but Lance can’t really complain. There are two bedrooms right across from each other and Keith stops to open the room on the right. 

“This is your room,” he starts before walking in and Lance follows. There’s a mattress on the floor in the corner that has Lance’s bed sheets from home already on it. He assumes his siblings did that for him. The rest of the room is bare besides the small dresser next to the one window and the bags Sophie and Ben brought for him.

“I know it’s not much but I figured we could look for more furniture later if you’re up for it.” Keith says and Lance can only nod. He turns back to Keith ready to be shown the rest.

Keith leads him the the end of the short hallway, pointing out the bathroom next to Lance’s room on his way, to a small living room area. There’s love seat on one side and a TV on the opposite wall. At the end of the room was a small dinning table with only four chairs around it. It wasn’t much but the blankets and throw pillows on the couch and small stacks of books on the coffee table made it look cozy.

Keith lead them to the kitchen that opened up to brightly a lit studio. Both the studio and kitchen had paintings and sketchbooks and other art supplies everywhere. There where windows along the walls of the studio that let in sunlight to make the two rooms the brightest but they were definitely the most chaotic. 

“I tried to clean up the best I could last night and when I came back with Sophie and Ben but, well…” Keith weakly gestured to the studio and had a sheepish smile on his face. 

Lance wasn’t really paying attention to what Keith was saying because now he was too busy taking in the artwork. Keith was _amazing_. Most of the paintings where of landscapes or animals but Lance recognized a few that where of Shiro and Pidge.

“Dude, these are awesome!” Lance exclaimed and turned to Keith bright eyed.

“You think so?” Keith fiddled with his bangs and a blush rose to his cheeks.

“Yes!”

“I - thanks,” he tucked some of his hair behind his ear. “I’ll try clear some more of it away later.”

“Dude, it’s fine. Trust me, I’m almost as bad when it comes to house plants.” Lance stopped him. 

Keith bit at his lip and scanned the room. “Okay.”

“Great. Now do you have any food? I’m starving.” Lance bumped his and Keith’s shoulders and Keith gave him a weak smile. 

“Yeah, but not a full meal or anything. I’m not much of cook,” Keith mumbled and made the short distance to the pantry. Lance was personally offended by the lack of food in it. All Keith had was a few family sized chip bags, and a jumbo box of ramen packets. “Okay, so I have a lot less than I thought.” 

Keith sighed and closed the pantry. “I’ll order some pizza. What do you like?”

“Oh, um, just pile as much meat as possible on it and I’m good.”

Keith nodded and opened the laptop that was charging on the counter. Lance tried to keep control of his face when he noticed the Steven Universe background. He and Keith were going to get along fine. 

While Keith ordered the pizza Lance wondered into the studio. He stopped and took in every painting and sketch he saw. There were a lot of reds and Lance was reminded of fire when looking at a few of them. The couple of works with Pidge had different shades of greens that made their honey-colored eyes pop. 

Lance’s favorite, though, was one single painting of the gas station at the corner of Rosemary St. and Coriander Ave. It was was exactly how it had looked the other night from the rain pelting down to the Bud Light sign in the window. There was a shadow of a person in front of the gas station that Lance could only assume was him. 

“Do you want garlic knots?” Keith called as Lance was reaching out to the painting. He dropped his hand and went back to the kitchen. 

“Yes, please!” 

Keith gave him a curious look like he was about to ask him something but instead nodded and went back to placing the order. Lance decided to go back to his room to see what Sophie and Ben had been able to bring him. There were four duffle bags and a backpack at the side of the mattress that looked filled to the brim. He opened the backpack first and sighed in relief when all his school supplies were accounted for. He put that aside and opened the largest duffle bag. It seemed that most of his clothes had been able to fit in that one duffle bag and he started sorting them into the drawers in the dresser. It didn’t take long for them to be close to overflowing and Lance had put the duffle bag in the closet. He’d have to get hangers whenever he and Keith went shopping.

The next two bags were stuffed with Lance’s books but he could tell it wasn’t even half of them. He immediately noticed they were the books he favored over the rest and he found himself close to tears at the fact that his siblings actually payed attention to his many, _many_ rants. He swallowed back a sob and quickly stacked them by the dresser save a few that he placed at the head of the mattress. 

The last duffle bag had all his makeup and skincare products. The top surface of the dresser was quickly covered in makeup and Lance was relieved - and slightly horrified - at the amount of room he had in the bathroom to put the rest. He would definitely be giving Keith a facial _soon_. 

Lance was placing the last of his products on the bathroom counter when there was a knocking on the door. He heard Keith’s rushed footsteps pass the bathroom and the door opening. Lance stepped out into the hallway and was about to slip back into his room when he saw the girl who was delivering the pizza.

She was tall and had broad shoulders. Her hair was a curly mess and had bright blue eyes that made a stark contrast to her brown skin. Lance, for a moment, thought he was looking at an older and taller Sophie. She looked up as Keith payed her and when she made eye contact with Lance, her eyes went wide and her face paled considerably. 

“Is everything okay?” Keith asked and the girl snapped her attention back to him.

“Yeah, sorry, enjoy your pizza!”

She was walking away before Keith could thank her. 

“Do you know her?” Keith asked as he shut the door.

“I don’t think so,” Lance whispered and stared at the door. “She looked familiar, though.”

“Long lost sister?” Keith asked with a laugh in his voice but Lance couldn't help but feel like that wasn’t completely wrong.

“Good God, I hope not.” Lance felt his stomach twist at the thought.

 

 

~~

 

 

They bought a bookshelf and hangers from Target, along with groceries after they had eaten and Lance had taken a nap. They were in Keith’s truck on the way home when Lance asked Keith to pull into the parking lot of a small gift shop. 

“We have cold foods, Lance.” Keith whined as Lance hopped out.

“Give me five minutes!” He slammed the passenger door shut and rushed into the store. Lance had been here on multiple occasions and knew that right next to the entrance and by the window was a stand filled with succulents. He grabbed the two he had been eyeing the last time he had been there and made his way to the register.

A minute later he was walking out with two new succulents and down ten bucks but it was worth it. He carefully opened the truck door and gave Keith a large grin as he sat down. Keith responded by giving him an amused look and was tearing out of the parking lot as soon as Lance shut the door.

“If you get us in wreck I will kill you!” Lance shouted in surprise and tightened his seatbelt. 

Keith only smirked and gunned the acceleration. Lance held onto the door handle in a death grip and tried not to close his eyes in fear. 

On the bright side they were back home in five minutes. On the not-so-bright side, Lance was pretty sure he had had about ten heart attacks in the those five minutes.

“If you _ever_ do that again…” Lance started and paused to suck in a breath.

“You’ll do what?” Keith smirked and raised an eyebrow. Lance was taken aback for a bit as he took in how incredibly hot Keith looked like that. The slowly setting sunlight glowing around him wasn’t helping either. 

“I’ll never give you my delightful company while you drive again!” Lance squeaked out and was out of the truck in a flash. He unlocked the door with the extra key Keith had given him before they had left and made his way to his bedroom. He went directly to the window and placed his two succulents on the window sill. Once he was satisfied with how they were placed he went back outside to help Keith bring the groceries in and help carry the bookshelf box to his room.

Putting away the groceries consisted of Lance asking a lot of questions about where things were to be placed and Keith not having an answer.

“I have never had this much food in this place at single time before. Just put it where you think it should go.” Keith finally snapped and Lance found himself organizing the food like it was back at his parents’ house. 

After that they took out all the pieces of Lance’s new bookshelf and Lance was relieved to find out that Keith excelled at building things. All he had to do was hand Keith the occasional piece and Keith didn’t mind doing the rest. 

Lance placed the bookshelf next to the window when Keith was done building it and was delighted that there was still plenty of room even after placing the books he had on it. He’d probably still need another a bookshelf once he did have all his books, though.

Lance was about to ask Keith if he wanted dinner when there a knock on the door. Lance got to it first this time and was surprised to see Sophie and Ben standing there with sheepish smiles on there faces.

“We brought you your cello,” Ben said and gestured to the instrument case on his back. 

“And more of your books!” Sophie added. Before they could say anything else Lance brought them both in for a hug. 

“Thank you,” he whispered. Lance backed away to let them in and Ben patted his back as he did. They went straight to Lance’s room with Keith following them.

Ben placed the cello by the closet and Sophie went to the bookshelf. Sophie helped Lance place his books on the shelf while Ben and Keith went to the living room talking about something that happened at the gym the other day. Lance and Sophie joined them when they finished and Lance almost brought up the pizza girl from earlier. He decided that was a can of worms to open later.

“Do you guys want to stay for dinner?” Lance asked instead. Ben and Sophie shared a look before answering.

“We probably shouldn’t,” Sophie said and she bit her lip nervously. 

“We’re technically not allowed to be anywhere near you,” Ben added.

“Oh,” Lance stared at his lap and took a breath. “Did dad get his flowers?”

“He threw them away - vase and all.” Sophie answered and Lance laughed.

 

 

~~

 

 

“You gonna go to sleep soon?” Keith asked from the doorway. Lance looked up from his book and couldn’t help but giggle at the amount of paint covering Keith’s body and clothes.

“I hope your planning on washing all that off.” Lance raised and eyebrow and Keith frowned.

“Be asleep by the time I’m out of the shower. If Allura finds out you stayed up this late she’ll have _both_ of our heads.” Keith turned and left with a grunt.

“Okay, mother!” Lance called after him and laughed when Keith walked back just to flip him off.

He checked the time on his phone when he heard the shower start and was a little surprised to find out it was already 1 AM. He sighed and placed his book on the floor. He decided to get a glass of water before turning in and quickly made his way to the kitchen. 

Lance took his time sipping on his water and chose to check out what Keith had been working on. He almost dropped his cup when he saw it. It obviously wasn’t finished but it was very clearly Lance walking out of the gift shop earlier that day. The painting had a warm feeling that made Lance’s heart swell.

_It’s too bad Keith isn’t my soulmate._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> They get cats next chapter~~  
> And yes, pizza girl will be back :3

**Author's Note:**

> I'm not sure how often I'm going to update because I'm working on another fic and I didn't even plan on this being multiple chapter so ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯
> 
> Find me on tumblr [@theworldswecantsee](theworldswecantsee.tumblr.com) and [@klanceslaysme](klanceslaysme.tumblr.com)


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